Metropolitan Nicholas: Pastoral Letters

Pentecost is not really the birthday of the Church, for the Church began with Creation, the bodiless powers, and Adam.
Pentecost is, however, the celebration of something new and radically different, as Peter quoted the Prophet Joel in his homily:
And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. For upon My servants and upon my handmaids in those days will I pour out of My Spirit, and they shall prophesy. Read more...

I greet you in the joy and brightness of this Feast of Feasts! I welcome you to this celebration that is the wellspring of all gladness and delight! I invite you to enter, with faith and with love, into the beauty and peace of this Eternal Dawn!
I bid you to rejoice, sing and exult, for Jesus Christ Who was Crucified, is now Risen from the Dead! Jesus Christ Who bore the weight of sorrows and shame, Who took away the sins of the world, Who was slain in darkness on Friday's Cross ... this same Jesus Who was beaten and pierced in shame is now the Risen Christ, Who shines in splendor, Who reigns in power, Who rejoices in triumph, Who has thrown down the Enemy in defeat forever, Who shouts the exultation of victory and majesty unto the ages of ages! Read more...

Truly, as the Apostle Paul says, "the Kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit!"
As we commence upon this season of the Fast, we push ourselves to a stricter discipline of fasting. We struggle to maintain a more intense observance of the various Lenten Services. But all of our observances are designed by the Church and the Holy Fathers to achieve one end - to bring us to a heightened awareness of our faith, or as we say in the Divine Liturgy, "progress in life, faith and spiritual consciousness" (second prayer of the Faithful). Read more...

The National Right to Life March will be held on Monday, January 23, 2006 in our nation's capital. It will be the 33rd March, since the Supreme Court legislated a new law in the land in 1973, legalizing abortion on demand.
Once again, I urge you to fervently support the Pro-Life cause in prayer, in service and in donations to local Pro-Life offices.
I especially urge you to participate in the March for Life. Plan to ride one of the many hundreds of buses that are traveling there. Or come yourself. The cause is worth all the toil and sacrifice. It is worth participating in the March in the snow and the cold. It is worth walking with thousands of other marchers. Read more...

Today, we have followed the Shepherds under the wings of Angels. Today, we have seen the Star, and we have traveled with the Wise Men. Today, we have searched in the habitations of the City, and we have found the Family of God in a Cave.
The Prince of Heaven, the Son of God, has embraced human nature in the roots of the earth, amidst the common beasts of the field. Born of God the Father to the young Virgin Mary, and fostered by the elderly and righteous Joseph, Jesus Christ shines with royal majesty - not from a palace, but from a place occupied by the likes of you and me. Read more...